1. Field of Use
This invention relates generally to a one-piece retainer clip for releasably securing elongated members, such as wires or tubes, to a structure, such as a panel, having a threaded or serrated stud rigidly affixed thereto.
2. Brief Description of the Prior Art
Various types of prior art retainer clips are available to secure elongated members, such as electric wires or tubes, to various kinds of structures. All such clips include means to mount the clip on the structure and means to secure the elongated members to the clip.
The automotive industry presently employs a two-piece plastic prior art clip comprising a first piece which is mountable on a threaded metal stud projecting from a metal panel (such as a firewall) and a separate second piece which is then releasably attachable to the first piece to secure the wires in an open-ended wire-receiving slot formed on the first piece.
The two separate pieces forming the clip are each fabricated separately in different dies and/or presses by a process of injection molding and are manually pre-assembled just prior to or during installation. The first part comprises a base plate on which are mounted a first tube having a first stud-receiving bore therethrough and a pair of bifurcated resilient legs defining a wire-receiving slot having a slot opening at one end for receiving wires inserted laterally thereinto. The second part comprises a second tube having a second bore for telescopically receiving the first tube and a closure plate connected thereto for closing the slot opening. Interengageable latch means are provided on the free ends of the legs and on the edges of a leg-receiving aperture formed in the closure plate. After the first part has been selected and manually installed on the stud and the wires have been manually installed in the slot, the second tube of the second part is selected and manually mounted on the first tube of the first part and slid to a closed position wherein the closure plate closes the slot opening to secure the wires in the slot and wherein the latch means interengage to releasably maintain the two parts in closed position. The latch means are manually releasable to enable the second section to be slid to open position wherein the wires are laterally removable from the slot. The second section can be entirely removed manually to enable the first section to be pulled off of the stud.
The aforedescribed prior art two-component clip is generally satisfactory for its intended use. However, since it requires two separate injection molding presses and/or two different sets of dies to fabricate, the cost of manufacturing is unnecessarily high. Furthermore, since its installation requires manual selection of two discrete different components, separate sequential manual installation steps, and manual alignment of the second component on the first component to ensure proper operation of the locking member relative to the legs, installation time and labor is unnecessarily high. It is desirable, therefore, to provide improved retainer clips for the aforesaid purpose and which have other uses in order to expedite manufacture of the clips, eliminate the need for pre-assembly, facilitate installation and servicing of the clips and wires, and to reduce labor and costs involved.